Description
Horizon is the sixth studio album by the American musical duo the Carpenters. It was recorded at A&M Studios (mainly in Studio “D” using then-state-of-the-art 24-track recording technology, 30 Dolby, and recorded at 30 inches per second). The Carpenters spent many hours experimenting with different sounds, techniques and effects.
The beautifully arranged “Aurora” sets the album’s ambience. “Eventide,” a continuation of the melody and theme, shows up later in the album. The covers, “Desperado” and “Please Mr. Postman,” have the duo adding nothing new to the tracks. A more convincing take on the standard “I Can Dream, Can’t I?” was co-arranged and orchestrated by the legendary Billy May. The track, despite the depressing horn and backing vocal arrangement, has Carpenter’s empathy and tone ringing clear. Another cover, “Solitaire” written by Neil Sedaka and Phil Cody, is melodramatic but a great match for Carpenter’s voice. The originals, including “(I’m Caught Between) Goodbye and I Love You,” are competent but not magical, and that fact diminishes the effort. Although some might be put off by the sorrow-or-bust ethos of this, Horizon gains its strength from strong production values and, of course, Karen Carpenter‘s singular gifts as an interpreter.
Video: The Carpenters – Only Yesterday (1975)
Tracklist:
| 1 | Aurora | 2:14 | |
| 2 | Only Yesterday | 4:12 | |
| 3 | Desperado | 3:37 | |
| 4 | Please Mister Postman | 2:50 | |
| 5 | I Can Dream Can’t I | 4:58 | |
| 6 | Solitaire | 4:39 | |
| 7 | Happy | 4:37 | |
| 8 | (I’m Caught Between) Goodbye And I Love You | 4:04 | |
| 9 | Love Me For What I Am | 3:30 | |
| 10 | Eventide | 1:32 |
Credits:
- Baritone Saxophone – Doug Strawn
- Bass – Joe Osborn
- Drums – Jim Gordon, Karen Carpenter
- Engineer – Ray Gerhardt (tracks: A4, B2, B4), Roger Young
- Engineer [Assistant] – Dave Iveland*
- Guitar – Tony Peluso
- Harmonica – Tom Morgan*
- Harp – Gayle Levant
- Keyboards – Richard Carpenter
- Mastered By [Mastering Engineer] – Bernie Grundman
- Oboe, English Horn – Earl Dumler
- Orchestrated By, Arranged By – Richard Carpenter
- Producer – Richard Carpenter
- Producer [Associate] – Karen Carpenter
- Steel Guitar – Red Rhodes, Thad Maxwell
- Tenor Saxophone – Bob Messenger
- Vocals – Karen Carpenter, Richard Carpenter
